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Penticton news
B.C. Fruit Growers Association to choose a president this weekend
PENTICTON - Kelowna's Fred Steele, president of the B.C. Fruit Growers' Association, will find out if he'll remain at the helm for a second term when he goes head-to-head with Vernon's Jeet Dukhia at the annual convention in Penticton this weekend. Dukhia was the association president in 2013, prior to Steele's term, so each candidate...
Former Penticton city manager is Alberta bound
PENTICTON — Monday night’s council meeting was the last one for departing Penticton Chief Administrative Officer Annette Antoniak, after announcing her intention to leave the city earlier this month. A recent press release issued by the Regional Recreation Corporation of Wood Buffalo in Fort McMurray announced Antoniak’s appointment as Chief Executive Officer. The release said...
UPDATE: Missing woman found
MERRITT - The missing woman the Upper Nicola Band and Okanagan Indian Band were in search for has been located. Before she was found, Annie Joe Gottfriedson, 20, of the Upper Nicola Band was last seen Feb. 16 at noon near Nicola Street in Merritt. “Our concerns run deep for Annie Jo and her family,”...
News software lost in Sportsplex theft
PENTICTON - The news has stopped temporarily, but the music plays on at SO Country Internet radio. A break-in at the Adidas Sportsplex in Penticton on the weekend cost well-known Internet radio broadcaster Dennis Walker his news software program. Early Sunday morning, Feb. 15, Walker was at his studio, which is set up in the...
Fair promotes healthy lifestyles
PENTICTON - The Okanagan-Similkameen Healthy Living Fair Society plays host to an expansive healthy living forum, just in time for spring. On Saturday, March 4, the Okanagan-Similkameen Healthy Living Fair returns to the Penticton Trade and Convention Centre. The fair showcases organizations offering health related resources, products and services that support and promote a healthy...
Stolen ATVs lead RCMP to men from Osoyoos and Kamloops
OSOYOOS - Two men will face charges following the theft of two ATVs and the attempted theft of a UTV as well as an attempted break and enter in the Anarchist Mountain area between Feb. 11 to 14. A utility trailer was also taken from 62 Avenue according to an RCMP media release. They say...
Osoyoos man with history of trafficking arrested
OSOYOOS - Osoyoos RCMP brought eight officers when they executed a warrant on the mobile home of a man with a history of drug trafficking Monday, Feb. 16. The warrant was part of an investigation into ongoing drug activity at the residence, located at 9418 97 Street, behind the Suzie Q's Diner, according to a...
Keremeos Grist Mill operator gets renewed lease
PENTICTON - After a long wait, the present operator of the Keremeos Grist Mill Historic site can get on with the business of operating the property. Minister of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations Minister Steve Thomson announced a lease offering to Mathieson Heritage Services for operation of the Keremeos Grist Mill on Feb.16. Mathieson...
Penticton group posts Lyme Sucks Challenge video
PENTICTON - A Penticton group has put out a YouTube video with a twist on last summer’s “Ice Bucket Challenge” in an attempt to raise awareness about Lyme Disease. The Penticton B.C. and Area Lyme Group recently put together the video as part of the “Lyme Sucks Challenge,” which started last October. Video producer Gary...
Weather records fall in Kelowna and Penticton
KAMLOOPS, VERNON FALL SHORT THOMPSON-OKANAGAN - It was definitely a spring-like weekend and there are several new high temperature records to show for it. In Kelowna the mercury blasted past the previous record, 11.1 Celsius set in 1974, to a balmy 12.8 C on Saturday while temperatures Sunday reached the previous record of 10 C...
Trial begins for man accused in Princeton double homicide
PENTICTON - The trial of a man accused of a double homicide and attempted murder of a third individual near Princeton in 2013 begins in Penticton this morning. The jury trial of John Ike Koopmans is slated to get underway in Penticton Supreme Court this morning, Feb.16. Koopmans was charged in 2013 with two counts...
Where to find Penticton’s own coffee shop troubadour
PENTICTON - There’s a little extra ambience for patrons of Blendz Coffee Shop in downtown Penticton, thanks to one of its regular customers. Colin Scott frequents the popular coffee stop on an almost daily basis, guitar in hand. After picking up his daily caffeine dose, Scott picks a perch and strums away on his guitar,...
Danger in the backcountry; avalanche warning issued
THOMPSON-OKANAGAN – The unseasonably warm weather this week has the experts at Avalanche Canada warning backcountry enthusiasts about the risk of snow slides. There have been a number of recent reports of large avalanches in the mountains across the Southern Interior, including the South Columbia, Kootenay-Boundary, Purcells, South Rockies, Lizard Range and Flathead regions, avalanche...
Fintry Queen investment opportunity has potential, but what about the risk?
KELOWNA — Listening to Andy Schwab talk about his plans for the Fintry Queen, it’s hard not to get caught up in his enthusiasm. “I'm feeling very confident,” says Schwab, president of the Okanagan Lake Boat Company, which owns the vessel and is proposing to resurrect the former car ferry and dinner cruise ship in...
Regional directors ponder prospect of establishing an economic development service
PENTICTON - A perennial request for grant money has one regional director advocating a policy change. West Bench director Michael Brydon introduced a director’s motion to reactivate a regional economic development service at the regional district board meeting last week. The motion came about following a meeting in which Okanagan Film Commission Commissioner Jon Summerland...
School board seeking partner input over busing, school calendar
PENTICTON - School District 67 is seeking partner input over the dual issues of too many “courtesy" riders on the bus, and how to manage class time next year. A review of bus routes in School District 67 appears imminent after the school board recently found evidence that one third of the district’s school bus...
More work needed to repair downtown water main
PENTICTON - City of Penticton public works crews will be returning to the site of one of two water main breaks that occurred last week. A water main break on Sunday, Feb. 1 at the corner of Main Street and Wade Avenue sparked a boil water advisory and resulted in thousands of gallons of water...
More to Three Blind Mice than biking, but that’s important, too
PENTICTON - The city and region have 20/20 vision when it comes to seeing recreation opportunities in the Three Blind Mice area. City of Penticton Communications Officer Simone Blais said the city has identified the area, located at 1400 Riddle Road, as an area of potential for sport and recreational use. The Penticton and Area...
Four wheeling death ruled accidental
PENTICTON - There were no lessons to be learned as a result of a young man’s death from an ATV incident last August. Kyle Richard Hardisty, 32, was injured when the all-terrain vehicle he was riding flipped onto its passenger side at the 18 kilometre mark of 201 Forest Service Road, August 23, 2014. Prior...
Motorists urged to slow down
PENTICTON - Penticton police, council and the Downtown Penticton Association got a little wet this morning, Feb. 10, getting the message out to slow down, downtown. Three groups were part of an education campaign to remind Penticton drivers of the speed limit changes to the city’s downtown core. Penticton council members, Penticton RCMP personnel and...
Airport discussions continue with Transport Canada
PENTICTON - Transport Canada wants out of the airport management business in Penticton. The federal department notified the regional district last October of a new review of airport policy. After an initial review in 1992, Transport Canada divested itself of 128 airport properties across the country. Eighteen other airport properties reviewed at that time were...
Valley-long trail envisioned by regional district
PENTICTON - The Okanagan's three regional districts like the idea of a continuous trail running from Osoyoos to Vernon. The Regional District Okanagan Similkameen’s board chair and Chief Administrative Officer met recently with Central Okanagan and North Okanagan counterparts to discuss the possibility of a trail running the length of the valley. “We meet with...
The what and the where of Valentine’s Day
PENTICTON - Looking for a way to celebrate Valentine’s Day? There are a few ways to enjoy Cupid’s day. With Valentine’s Day taking place on Saturday this year, it’s the perfect opportunity for the Rotary Club to host a dance on the S.S. Sicamous. And that’s just what they are doing. Tickets are only $10...
This great Canadian rock band to make second appearance at Peachfest
PENTICTON - Penticton will get another opportunity to rock to one of Canada’s best known bands this summer. The Penticton Peach Festival welcomes 54-40 as the band returns to Peach City again in 2015. Peachfest Entertainment Director Bill Kolter said people have been asking for a return engagement by the group since their appearance in...